Apparatus for purifying grain, &amp;c.



30. 820,630. TENT HAY 15, 1906.`

, D. H. swag. APPARATUS ron Pmmma GRAIN, ew,

APPLYIUTIOH FILED AU8..3, 1901.

fax; .I

` f. SE STATES PATENT FETCH DAviD H. srUHR, or DAVENPORT, iowA, AssicNoR r/eAMnaicAn `eaAiN PU-Rirraa cONs'rRUc-riuc coMrANr, oryrfirsarr scura DAKOTA, A CORPORATION' or SOUTH DgAinirrgejy APPARATUS Foa sensu-rime easier.. an.

Specification of Letters Patent.

- Patented' tray i5, ieee.

Application led August 3, 1901. Serial No. 70,735.

To @ZZ whom zit may con/cern:

Be it known that I, DAVID H. STUHR, of Davenport, in the county of Scott and vState of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Purifying Grains and other Products; and do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, 4and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to an improved apparatus for purifying grains and other products by removing ,therefrom impurities or foreign substances clinging thereto-such as stains, mold, dust, must, smut, and bacteria-4 which not only lessen the market value of the product by reason of discoloration thereof, but also injure the quality of the product,V andwhich bacteria tends to destroy the ger-` minating quality of the grain.

` The apparatus herein shown has beenV devised forthe purpose of purifyinggrain-such as barley, oats, and the like; but the improvements constituting my invention maybe embodied in apparatus for purifying or cleaning other productsA 'The invention is intended for carrying out a process of purifying grains which consists generally in passing the product to be puried through a suitable chamber and'intron ducing 'to said chamber during the progress of the grain' therethrough a purifying and dampening agent, saidi'purlfying agent con` Vsistin ,A preferably, of-a sulfur or sulfur compoun and the dampening agent consists, preferably, offstearn. The steam acts upon the product -,to loosen theinvesting coating of the foreign substances thereon, and the fumes thereafter attack -the loosened vesture, carry away the objectionable foreign substances, and leave the product in av cleanly and sweetened'condition. j

My present invention relates to an improved construction in means for introducing to the purifying-chamber separately from fe'ach other a dampening agentand purifying fumes, whereby the product to be purified may be dampened before the same is acted upon by the fumes, in means for independ-i ently regulating the supply of the dampening agent and of the fumes, and means for preventing tlie escape of the fumes at or near the working level of the apparatus.

The invention consists in the matters hereinafter set forth, and more particularlypointed out in the appended claims.. l 1

In the drawings, Figure l is a View, partly in vertical section and partly in elevation, of an apparatus embodying my improvements.

` Fig. 2 is a vertical section of afragment of the purifying-chamber, showing another form of bmeans for introducing the fumes to the cham-` As shown in said drawings, and referring more particularly to Fig. l, A designates a vertically-elongated chamber having the appearance of a shaft anrLthrough which grain is adapted to pass from the upper to the lower end thereof. Said chamber is made of con# siderable height, it being fromthbit/y tr forty feet, depending upon the condi/ion inap/ach. instance. I

At the upper end o f the-hamberisa con veyer, shell', or spout B, which is adapted to' lead from an elevator or other like place (not shown) yand throughv which grain is delivered to the chamber. vSaid chamber is provided wvith an outlet chute or spout C, which latter communicateswith the shell of a discharge-conveyer D, said discharge-conveyer leading to any suitable place for the disposal of the grain. Said discharge cliutev or spout -lC-is provided with a valve or gate C', by l.which the passage of grain therethrough is regulated. The chamber Ais constructed at struction, permitting the grain to pass down:n

wardly therethroughfand consist of inclined bars E', affixed to the side walls of the chamber, and transverse slats e, fitting at the ends thereof in upwardly-opening notches or recesses in the upper faces or margins of said bars. i i' l The end bars of the shelves are fastened to the side walls of the chamber by wooden pins passed therethrough and into said walls and by tenons at the ends of said bars which engage mortiscs in said walls, it being undesirable to use other fastening devices forthis purpose because of the deteriorating action ,Y

ot the sulfur fumes thereon. The chamber is provided at Aone side thereof with a door A4, which permits taccess to the chamber for cleaning the same or lother pur oses. It is desirable thatl the gate or v'alve be so regulated with respect'to the inlet of the grain as to fill the bottom of the chamber with a body of grain-of a height of five or six feet to prevent.the'fumes escaping into the dischargeconveyer. An inspecting-window A5 will also desirably be huilt in the wall of the chamber, near the base thereof, in order to readily determine the level of the grain in the chamber, whereby said level may by the use of the valve C be uniformly maintained.

The furnace, which is designated as a whole by F, for generating the fumes may be made of any character or construction desired. Said furnace is connected with the purifying-chamber by means of a. pipe or passage connected with or embodying means for cooling the fumes prior to their entrance to the purifying-chamber and provided with means for positively carrying said fumes from the furnace` to the chamber.

As herein shown, G designates a pipe by which the fumes are conducted to the purifying-chamber. Said pipe communicates at Vone end with the purifying-chamber near the lower end thereof and at its other end with a cooling-coil H, which latter is connected by a pipe H with thefurnace, said pipe H being provided with a regulating-valve l. The pipe G is connected with the cooling-pipe H through the medium of an exhaust -fan I, said fan receiving the fumes from the coolingpipe H and delivering the same through the pipe G tothe purifying-chamber. The said exhaust-fan is provided with the usual driving-Wheel l, lwhich is driven from any suit- `ble source of power. (Not shown.) The cooling-pipe H is shown as having the form of a coil and is made of considerable length,

.whereby the fumes passing therethrough on their way from the furnace to the purifyingchamber give up a large amount of their heat and enter thei Purifying-chamber at a relai tively low ten4 erature.

tue dampening agent, which inthe present instance is steam, is conducted to the purifying-chamber. Said pipe delivers the steam to said chamber independently of the delivery of the fumes thereto and enters the chamber a short distance above the entering end of the fumes-pipe G. The steam-pipe J is provided with a branch pipe which is carried upwardly and enters the purifyingchamber at a point near theupper end of the chamber. Said pipes J J are provided with controlling-valves j, whereby the supply of steam to the chamber may be regulated to correspond with the condition of thegrain or other product being purified, The. pipe J is provided with a drip-cock j2 /to permit water of condensation toescape therefrom. The pipes J J as herein shown, c feliver live steam to the purifying-chamber. In addition to delivery of live steam throt gh the pipes J J to the purifying-.chamber l have provided means for supplying tothe chamber exhauststeam from one or more off the engines used about the elevator plant, said exhaust-steam being introduced to the yurifying-chamber through a pipe K, which isshown as entering the c amber a short distance below the fumes-pipe G. Said ex hust-steam pipe is provided with a regulating-valve k.

Notwithstanding the solid body of grain in the lower end of the purifying-shaft, as before stated, traces of the fumes are likely to escape therethrough and into the conveyer D, and I have shown means for preventing the escape of said fumes at or near the level ofthe base of the chamber A and for discharging the same a distance above said level. The means for this purpose consists, in this instance,E of a ventilator-stack L, which is provided at its lower end with a fiat fiaring portion L fitting over an opening in the top of the shell of the conveyer D and connected at its margin with said shell by means affording as-tight connections. Said stach is exten ed upwardlya sufficient distance t'o carry what fumes may escape into the conveyer D a height at which the discharge thereof will be unobjectionable, the height of said stack depending upon the location of the surrounding buildings and other conditions. Said stack is provided at the apex of the Haring portion with a valve or gate L2, by which the current of gases through said stack may be regulated, it being necessary to limit the passage of the gases therethrough, as the full capacity of the stack would tend to create a downward current of the fumes in the purifying-chamber.

In the operation of the apparatus described sulfur or other purifying agent is ignited in i the furnace and the fumes thereof pass from the furnace through the cooling-pipe H and the pipe G to tlzc purifying-chamber, said J designates a steam-pipe through which l fumes being drawn or forced through .said

IOD

IIO

follows that a considerable quantity of air' willbe drawn from the furnace with the fumes and will be delivered to the purifying-'chainber. Thev said exhaust-fan there ore constitutes a means for delivering to the purifyingchainber an adniiXture of air and. fumes.

The provision of the cooling-pipe H in connection with the exhaust-fan I, by which the fumesare positively delivered from the furnace to the purifying-chamber, is of considerable practical importance, for the reason that with the proper length of the cooling-pipe I am enabled to deliver the fumes to the chamber at substantially atmospheric temperature. As a result of this operation the heat l of thefuines does not tend to drive off the grain after its moisture from the steamv enteringy the chamber nor does it tend to drive off the moisture from the grain, as would be true if the fumes were permitted to enter the chambei' at the original temperature ofvgeneration thereof. It is essential to the proper purification of grain by the process mentioned that a certain percentage ofV moisture be added vto the introduction to the purifyingy apparatus, (the amount depending upon the condition of the grain and the'quantity of moisture carried thereby when introducedl to the apparatus,) as if the proper moistened condition of the grain be not maintained the fumes will have little or no effect toward removing the foreign substances therefrom. With my construction, therefore, the efficiency 0f the fumes to purify the grain is great y increased overl a processwherein the fumes are introduced to the purifying-chamber at practicallytheir maximum temperature. Moreover, by the use of the exhaustfan and the regulating-valve h in the pipe H l am enabled to vary the quantity of fumes delivered to the purifying-chamber to `correspond with the requirements for each batch of grain passed through the apparatus, being enabled to deliver as small or as large a quantitv of the fumes between the minimum and maximum limits thereof as is required.

The construction whereby the steam is delivered to the purifying-chamber independently ol' the fumes is of considerable practical importance, for the reason that grains delivered `to the cha mber at different times coni different tain varying quantities of moisture, and it is obvious that a batch of grain containing a given percentage of moisture will require a less quantity of the dampeiiing agent to prop- Verly prepare the same for action thereon bv the fumes than another batch Which is relai'- tively drier. If the quantity ofthe dampening agent delivered to the purifying-chamber be non-varying with respect to the quantity of fumes delivered thereto, there will be no means of regulating the supply of said dainpeniiig agent to correspond with the amount of moisture carried by thergraiiirvvhen introi duced into the apparatus, and abatch of grain, therefore, having a considerable quantity of moisture must be treated to the same amount of dampening agent as grain having initial moisture therein. l/Vith my construction, on the vother hand, l

of the dama less .quantity of.

am enabled to vary the quantit r pening agent introduced to the purifyingchamber and am therefore enabled to uniformly moisten all conditions of grain which passes through the apparatus, so that the action of the fumes thereon will be uniform; As a result of the construction described the purified product may be maintained substantially uniform notwithstanding the varying conditions of the grain when delivered to the apparatus.

The introduction of steam through the pipe J to the purifying-,chaiiiber near the upper end thereof or near the grain to said chamber is of considerable importance, as it enbles the application of the dampening agent to the grain for a considerthe introduction of jl.

too

able time in advance of the most effective action of the fumes thereon.

Moreover, the

delivery of exhaust-steam to the chamber is* an important feature of the operation herein Y described, for the reason that saidexhauststeam contains a greater quantity of mois- ,l

ture than the by the use of saideXhaust-steain t0 insure live steam,.and I am enabled the proper moistening of the grain, notWithf standing its condition upon entering the apn For different conditions of grains i paratus. a

quantities of live and exhaust lsteam,

Will be employed to produce the best resuits, the controlling-valves of the steampipes permitting such regulation.

So far as is concerned the introduction of the dampening agent near thetop or inlet end of the purifying-chamber and the coolinv of the said fumes before their introducy tion into said chamber I may employ a por,-` tion of the steam for drawing the fumes into said chamber in the manner shown in Fig. 2.

As shown in said figure, M designates the.

steam-pipe through which steam isdelivered to the purifying-chamber, andsaid 'steam- P1P chamber and acts in the manner of an injece is made lto enter the fumes-pipe` G at or near the entrance of said fumes-pipe to thev tor to create a current of the fumes toward the purifying-chamber. As herein shown, said fumes-pipe is provided with a short vertical portion g and a short horizontal portion g, .which latter enters the chamber, and the steam-pipe M enters the pipe g at the intersection thereof with the vertical pipe g. Said steam-pipe is provided with a branch M, which is adapted to extend near the top of the chamber in the manner of the pipe J (shown in F ig. l) and to enter the chamber at or near the top thereof. Said pipes M M are provided with regulating-valves mA m.

lt is obviousthat -many changes may be made in the details of the apparatus without Adeparting from the spirit of my invention,

and I do not wish to be limited thereto eX- cept as hereinafter made the subject of specific claims. Furthermore, the various parts of the apparatus maybe used in connection with or separat e from other parts thereof, and certain of the claims have been drawn to cover the separate parts without limitation to the combination 1n which they are herein shown.. Y

I claim as my inventiom- 1. An apparatus for the purpose set forth, comprising a vertically-elongated purifyingchamber which is closed `atits bottom andv 42. An apparatus for the' purpose set forth,

comprising a vertically-elongated purifyingchamber, means for continuously supplying grain to the top, and withdrawing it from the bottom, of said chamber, means for supplying sulfur fumes to the lower partof said chamber, means for supplying a dampening agent to the said chamber near the top or receiving end thereof and means for separately .controlling the supply of the sulfur fumes and of the dampening agent to said chamber. 3. An apparatus for the purpose set forth comprising a vertically-elongated purifyingchamber, means for continuously supplying igrain, to the upper part and withdrawing it om the bottom of said chamber, a furnace for generatingsulfur fumes connected with the lower part of sald chamber by a passage, means in said passage for withdrawing t e fumes from-the furnace and forcing them into the chamber and a valved steam-supply pipe discharging ainto the chamber betweeny `the bottom of said chamber, a furnace for gener-vA` ating sulfur fumes and connected with the lower part of said chamber by a passa e, meansin said passage' for withdrawing t e fumes from said furnace and forcing them into the chamber, a cooling-pipe forming part of said passage, means for introducing a dampening agent into' said chamber between said passage and the upper art of the chamber and means for separately controlling the supply of the sulfur fumes and of the dampening agent to said chamber.

5. An apparatus for the purpose set forth, comprising a vertically-elongated purifyingchamber, means for continuously supplying grain to the upper and withdrawing it from the lower part of the chamber, a furnace for generating sulfur fumes, connected with the purifying-chamber by a assage, means in said passage forwithdrawing fumesfrom the furnace and forcing them into the chamber and means for moistem'ng or dampening the grain before it is acted upon by the fumes entering the chamber.

6. An apparatus f'or the purpose set forth comprising'a purifying-chamber, means for continuously dehvermg the product to be purified to, and. withdrawing it from said chamber, means for introducing a dampening agent into said chamber to meisten the product, a furnace lfor generating sulfur fumes, means for cooling Athe fumes, and means for conducting the cooled fumes to the said chamber.

' 7. AnA apparatus for the purpose set forth comprising a chamber through which the products to be purified are passed, and provided at its upper end with an inlet and at-its lower end with an outlet, a conveyer communicating with said outlet, means for delivering the purifying fumes to said chamber, means for dampening the product preparatory to the action thereon by the fumes and means for withdrawing the fumes which escape from the purifying-chamber to the conveyer and discharging the same at a point above the l'evel ,of the base of the apparatus.

8. An apparatus 'for the vpurpose set forth comprising a chamber through which the product to be 'purified is passed and provided at its upperI end with an inletand at its lower end with an out-let, a conveyer communicating with` Said outlet, means for delivering the purifying fumes to said chamber, means for dampening the product preparatory to the' actionthereon by the fumes, and a ventilating-stack lcommunicating at its lower end reo IKO

with 'the interim` of said conveyer for carrynce of two mtnesses, this 26th day of July, ing the fumes from said conveyer which es- A. D. 1901. cape from the purifying-chamber, said stack belng' made of considerable height and proi DAVID H' STUHR' 5 vided with a. regulating-valve. Witnesses:

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as WILLIAM L. HALL,

my invention 1 affix my signature, 1n pres- GEoRGE R. WILKINS.. 

